Pale and VERY interesting! Claire Danes, January Jones, Kerry Washington and Zooey Deschanel are the leading lights in pastel gowns at the Emmy Awards red carpet

With their array of ornate pastel coloured gowns, the leading lights of the red carpet beat out the brighter hues at Sunday night's Emmy Awards.

January Jones, Zooey Deschanel, Kerry Washington and Claire Danes led the way in a dazzling array of dresses, looking their glamorous bests as they stepped out at the Nokia Theatre in Downtown Los Angeles.

Man Man actress January looked pretty in a pale dusky pink Givenchy gown designed especially for her and wore her blonde hair in a curled vintage style fitting the star of the 1960s drama.

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Pale and interesting: January Jones, Zooey Deschanel, Kerry Washington and Claire Danes looked stunning in pastel gowns as they arrived on the red carpet at the Nokia Theatre for the 65th Emmy Awards

'They made this for me so I had to pick it,' January told E! about her frock, which featured an ornate lacy detail on the skirt. And the star seemed confident, that, even if Mad Men didn't win any awards, the cast would find plenty of time to party.

'We know how to celebrate pretty well even if we don't win,' she said.

Meanwhile, Zooey Deschanel plumped for an icy blue J Mendel creation with a thigh high split showing off her toned legs teamed with towering platform heels and a Chanel tourmaline cocktail ring.

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The
ever-stylish Kerry Washington, who was this week named the Best Dressed Woman in the world by People magazine, looked typically glamorous in an
unusual cream, gold and white floaty Marchesa dress.

Many other stars opted for pale frocks, with Padma
Lakshmi sporting a draped pale blue KaufmanFranco dress, while Malin
Akerman arrived in a flouncy white strapless Marchesa gown with her blonde hair
pulled into a chic updo.

Tickled pink: The Mad Men star revealed her lacy Givenchy dusky gown was especially made for her

Ivory tower: Julie Bowen said she opted for this striking and fitted Zac Posen dress because it was 'so beautiful' while she carried a Marchesa handbag

Sheer delight: Julianne Hough sported a pale mint green gown with see-through skirt, and arrived on the carpet with her dancer brother Derek who was nominated for a gong at the show

'I
did it and then Miley Cyrus did it like, literally a week late,' she
said about her punky platinum hair. 'And obviously she is way more
famous than I am so then everyone was like, "It's the Miley Cyrus!" And I
was like, "No, I didn't copy her!"'

Arriving
with her Project Runway star Tim Gunn, the duo were happy and relaxed
on the back of their win for Outstanding Host for a Reality or
Reality-Competition Program at last week's Creative Arts Emmys.

Elsewhere, the cast of Breaking Bad were upbeat on the red carpet, despite the show ending next week.

'The ending is perfect, unapologetic,' said Bryan Cranston who received yet another Emmy nomination for Best Actor.

Wonderful in white: Game of Thrones star Emilia Clarke teamed her strapless Donna Karan Atelier gown with a silver belt, Taylor Schilling sported a high necked gown with split and Kate Mara stepped out in sheer designed top and skirt

His
co-star Aaron Paul brought two dates - his wife Lauren and mother Darla
to the show. 'She just so incredible and always has been so
supportive,' he said about his mother. 'She literally threw me out of
the house when I was 17 and said, "Good luck." She always knew I wanted
to do this.'

Cranston's on-screen wife Anna Gunn ensured she glammed up on the carpet in a
stark contrast to her more dowdy alter-ego Skyler White.

'We
just wanted an old Hollywood kind of look,' she said about her stunning
one shouldered baby pink gown with black detailing. 'I would prefer this
kind of look to the Skyler look.'

Back to black: Lena Heady wore a daring sheer number split to the thigh, while Amanda Peet sported an unusual frock with sheer sleeves, Aubrey Plaza arrived in a long sleeved embroidered Marios Schwab dress and Homeland's Morgan Saylor arrived in black and white

Going solo: Lena Dunham stood out in her floral flared dress as she took her place in the camera line alongside Damian Lewis and wife Helen McCrory and Claire Danes and husband Hugh Dancy

Flower power: Lena Dunham wore a rather garish Prada gown while her Girls co-stars Zosia Mamet also went for a tie dye style pink, white and black number

Handsome couples: Kaley Cuoco arrived with her tennis player beau Ryan Sweeting while Damian Lewis sported a shaven head as he posed with wife Helen McCrory, who wore a white gown and carried a Stark clutch

The red carpet didn't just belong to the ladies, however.

Kevin Spacey, Will Arnett, Jason
Bateman and the Big Bang Theroy's Jim Parsons all cut dapper figures in
dark suits and white shirts as they made their way down the red carpet
hoping for Emmy victory.

Matt Le Blanc arrived with girlfriend Andrea Anders, while Jon Hamm showed off his new beard in a white dinner jacket and black trousers.

Palling around: Aaron Paul and Bryan Cranston were in high spirits despite the pending end of Breaking Bad next Sunday

Dapper: Jon Hamm went for a white dinner jacket and black trousers as he arrived with wife Jennifer Westfeldt while nominee Jason Bateman stuck to a more traditional suit and tie as he posed with wife Amanda